Just a Game » Dave East

eleven.

Dave straightened his tie and tugged on his sleeves, checking himself in the mirror. As much as he complained about dressing up, he had to admit he looked pretty good. He had a fresh cut and his mom had bought him a new shirt and a tie that matched her blue dress.

Man, it was weird to see her like this. She wasn't giddily excited like she had been about men in years past. It was like a calm contentment had settled over her so despite the fact that this was the third time he'd personally witnessed her getting married, it was the first time he actually believed it was going to last. It gave him a sense of peace to know that she was finally at peace.

Maybe she was right when she told him it was never too late. He sighed at that. No matter how hard he tried not to, he always came back around to thinking about that. About her. It didn't do him any good, it just made him feel like shit. He supposed he should try harder to get over it before he ran into her, especially since he and Antonio seemed to have repaired their friendship somewhat.

He'd been surprised as hell when Antonio called him only a couple of weeks after their fight. It surprised him even more when Antonio actually apologized for what happened that morning. He hadn't asked for awkward explanations or demanded to know details, he'd just said that his reaction had been unfair and he'd said things he didn't mean and that he was sorry. Dave apologized for sneaking around behind his back and that was that.

They'd been talking on the phone fairly regularly since then, more regularly than they ever had before, actually. Slowly, over the course of several conversations, more of the story had come out in bits and pieces. Antonio explained that Lex had torn into him and said some things that pissed him off, but made him think hard about how he treated his girlfriends. Then he'd started asking Dave about his thoughts on relationships and women. As weird as it was to talk about that sort of thing with another dude, Dave tried to explain as best he could and Antonio seemed to get it. Some of it anyway.

A few weeks ago Dave finally admitted to his best friend that he had feelings for his sister, though only after several beers and Antonio pushing hard and accusing him of being in denial. He seemed to know something Dave didn't and he'd wondered at the time if Alexis had said anything to him, but didn't ask. He didn't want it to seem like he was trying to dig up information on her. Antonio tried to talk him into calling Lex and that night he almost did, but at the last second he hung up. Just like he had every other time.

Dave had gone over his final conversation with Alexis a million times since that morning and he knew there were things he'd left unsaid that he needed to say. He couldn't even count the number of times he'd picked up his phone and started dialing her number, but it just seemed wrong to have that conversation over the phone. Or maybe he was just a coward.

Again, it didn't matter. It especially didn't matter right now, since he needed to be focusing on his mom and the wedding that was supposed to go down in the next half hour. Last time they'd talked Antonio wasn't sure if he could make it, but he said he would try. Dave hoped he came, it would mean a lot to his mom and, he had to admit, he wouldn't feel quite right until he actually looked into his best friend's eyes and saw that there were no hard feelings.

The wedding was a small affair, just a few close friends and family in a little wedding chapel not far from the house. Dave stood proudly next to his mother while she exchanged vows and may or may not have shed a little tear when his new stepfather kissed the bride.

It wasn't until they turned to the few spectators to present the husband and wife that he noticed Antonio sitting in the back row. With Alexis. He was so caught off guard he tripped and almost fell on his face as he started back down the aisle.

Damn, she looked beautiful. She was wearing that same green shirt she'd worn on New Year's Eve, this time with a little black skirt that showed off her legs. When she met his eyes and gave him the tiniest of smiles it was like a shock to his system and he was sure he stopped breathing for a minute. Just looking at her made his heart pound in his chest and he had to force himself to look away long enough to nod to Antonio as he walked past them down the aisle.